Topic: So, You Can Now Ignore Users

@exit it’s a two level process, blocked users start as ignored, but not all ignored users are necessarily blocked- the user needs to consciously go to the ignore list and choose to block the person.

@VoidofLight Where have you been? have I just been on the wrong threads?

The bullying was actually throughout primary school and secondary school (the Singapore equivalent of an elementary and middle school). We don't technically have "highschools" here like in America, and even our "junior highs" are tertiary level institutes equivalent to a college. But, once I got into college, the bullying did cease since people there were old enough to act more maturely. Kids can be cruel. Trey and Matt were correct in that kids aren't little angels; their innocence also means they lack moral consciousness.

It's why I hate communicating on the Internet sometimes because you don't see the other person's facial expressions, leading to miscommunication when you don't know if the other party is joking or intentionally trying to hurt you.

Yeah, I was worried about the side effects of the medication, but my anxiety and my anger issues (partially triggered by said anxiety) were so bad I had to take them. I don't think I'd ever rid myself of my anxiety issues through therapy. It's a long healing process that might take up my entire life even, but I'm used to it.

As for avoiding social media, it is one solution, but I guess that, in spite of all my complaints about online interaction, I'm more comfortable talking to people online than face-to-face outside because of my social anxiety. It's hard to make friends with people outside, let alone in Singapore. I grew up with American ideals thanks to a childhood of American media, and it kinda left me isolated from Singaporeans and their more collectivist, nationalist ideals that don't always support the concept of "American freedom" or individualism. But that's a political can of worms best left alone, so let's leave it at that.

@NeonPizza Summed it up perfectly.

To be clear, this is incorrect.

When you ignore another user, it simply doesn't show you their comments/posts anymore, effectively hiding them. However, they will continue to see your messages.

In some cases, you may decide that you need to block that user from seeing your posts, in which case you can visit your ignore list and block them completely. This is only encouraged by mods when there is a persistent problem between users. Only at this point would the blocked user stop seeing your posts/comments (you could call this a reverse ignore).

Whilst lots of people can simply not read comments by users they don't like, others find it easier using the ignore button.

Currently, less than 2% of ignores result in a block.

I think introducing a limit of the number of users you can block may be effective and therefore only used in more extreme cases, as we agree it should be a last resort.

@antdickens It's kinda ironic in a way because blocking stirs up drama, and one of the rules on NL forum is not to do so specifically. I know I'm not the best person to call out on this since I accidentally blocked someone before (out of ignorance of what blocking does), but still.

@Link-Hero And that's why I'll never drink. It tastes bad anyway (I had a single dab on my tongue when I was a kid).

@Maxenmus yeah, in an ideal world we wouldn't have features like this... but I think actively trying to help and solve problems rather than simply ignoring them is the better direction, even if things need to change and evolve over time.

The alternative approach might be to start banning people who are making the site uncomfortable for multiple other users; there would be a lot of nuances there, and people would still feel aggrieved. We would rather give users the option to resolve matters themselves than step in like that.

Like all things, there needs to be a balance though. Maintaining an affable and friendly atmosphere in your establishment is sometimes more important than the freedom of speech. If people are causing trouble in a diner, the diner owner kicks them out to prevent the other customers from having their meal disrupted by two drunkards roughhousing with each other.

One reason why I would choose to stay in forums like NintendoLife for the long term is because of said affable atmosphere, where no one attacks others for their opinion or make other users feel uncomfortable or unwelcomed in any shape or form. Just saying.

@antdickens @Eel Thanks for taking the time to clarify, it’s much appreciated. While I still stand by what I said earlier, I can understand your point.

So just to be clear, you can block users yourself under the ignore list in your profile? This doesn’t require a mod right?

@exit that's correct, it's an additional step after you have already ignored someone.

@Maxenmus I totally agree with that sentiment, strangely some people don't understand the analogy and feel that if we ban them, we're removing 'free speech'. It's exactly as you put it, if they aren't going to behave in our house, then we're entitled to eject them. We have now banned over 7,500 users over the years... so it's safe to say we've been doing what we can to keep it an affable atmosphere!

@exit - Looks like this all wrapped up with a nice bow by the time I got back around to it, but again, no, you don’t get ignored randomly. That’s not how it works. You have to bother someone. So much that they push two buttons. Maybe three. These are worldwide forums with hundreds or even thousands of posts, some a decade old or more. You’re not being excluded if someone ignores you. It’s one drop in a large pond. Try not to annoy people and you won’t get blocked. Try not to let it bother you if you do, because it’s not a big deal.

@bimmy-lee Yeah I know. I hear what you are saying. My point was simply sometimes we have no control over that. Someone simply might not like your view, or like you said earlier, how you present it.

To be fair, I only noticed that somebody must of blocked me as I could not see a few posts that were made in the latest topics. I’ve had no interaction with the person, or even know who it is, so I assumed I was blocked by something I said. After a little search it lead me to this thread. I think a little discussion around it is fine.

All good over here.

Just neco-ing this thread. I've been a bit ticked off for a while that Anti has blocked me, I assume they have blocked half of the users of this site. I'm fairly sure I and others would have been blocked by this user for something as innocuous as saying we like Nintendo's first party output or similar

Now, I'm not a fan of this feature generally. This is a small community, we can all see each other, we know when posts are happening. Conversations aren't the fly-by experience you get on Reddit etc. The point of a forum is that it is not that. I'd rather this feature just straight up not exist, if people are harrassing others the solution is to ban those users

But even where this feature might have has some merit, as a kind of semi-ban, I feel like in this particular case it is being abused. There should at the very least need to be mod approval for a block and/or a limit/cool down on the feature

@skywake I have felt the same way since it was implemented and even voiced the same thing to the staff. I was told by Ant Dickens himself that it is staying the way it is and they are not changing it or removing the feature.

@skywake Why do you think it's being abused though? I mean, why must everyone see your comments?

I’ve been meaning to ask what is the limit on the ignore list? I don’t think I have it it but yeah just in case.

While I haven't used ignore and block on this site, it's an extremely important feature.

Yeah, the Ignore button is just one of those things that's at the discretion of the user and that's that.

So long as they don't also hit the Report button, don't worry about it. It's them, not you.